New York Man Awarded $40 Million after Wrongful Conviction

A New York jury has awarded Jeffery Deskovic $40 million after he spent over 15 years imprisoned for the rape and murder of a high school classmate, as reported by the Washington Post.

Deskovic was sixteen-years-old when he confessed to the rape and murder of a classmate. His confession came after a six hour interrogation and three lie detector tests being administered. He was released in 2006 after DNA tests revealed that the sperm taken from the victim did not match his. The DNA tests matched a different man who later confessed to the rape and murder.

Deskovic sued the detective in the murder case and the prosecuting county. The jury awarded $41,650,000, which his lawyers call “the largest sum in U.S. history.” However, Deskovic will only receive $10 million because of a pretrial agreement.

In 2012, Deskovic founded the Jeffrey Deskovic Foundation for Justice, an organization aimed at overturning wrongful convictions and helping those wrongly imprisioned reintegrate into society.